Datsun Is "Go", Frills Are A "No"

by Derek Kreindler

Published: July 15th, 2013

The wraps are finally off the first Datsun in decades – dubbed the Go, this will be Nissan’s major push into low cost motoring, with a starting price under $6,700.

Power comes from a 1.2L 4-cylinder engine mated to a 5-speed gearbox. At 149 inches long, the Go isn’t much bigger than a Fiat 500, but will apparently have proper seating for 5 passengers. Agility in traffic and a small footprint for congested roads is the priority here, and with many customers expected to be moving up from motorcycles and scooters, the small size is still more comfortable than cramming multiple people onto the back of a two-wheeled vehicle.

India, Indonesia and Russia will be the initial launch markets, and production will be localized for all three. Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn told Automotive News that low-cost cars account for 40 percent of the market in those three countries, but until now, Nissan lacked a proper entry (though Renault’s Dacia certainly would qualify). Nissan is also aiming for 10 percent market share in India by 2016.

#CarlosGhosn #Datsun #DatsunGo #India #Indonesia #LowCostCar #Nissan #Renault #Russia #SouthAfrica

Derek Kreindler

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Nomandamarinero on Jul 15, 2013

I would like you to be more specific about the "dreadful" quality of Renault products in Argentina, in my family we have had several and they never gave us any kind of trouble, the company has been manufacturing in the country for over 50 years and has a well earned following

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- Magnusmaster on Jul 17, 2013
  
  The quality of Renault products in Argentina has sharply reduced during the last years hoping to sell garbage at a slightly lower price than the competition. Lots of people who bought Renault before now moved to the competition. There is a lot of cost-cutting all over the place, very cheap plastics even compared to the competition, horrible build quality. They also sell the Clio Mio which feels like a 70s car, just look at the stuff they cut and then think about how this thing behaves on a crash. All cars made in Argentina and Brazil are crap as they use cheap materials and poor building to make profits but Renault is by far the worst offender.
  
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Redliner on Jul 15, 2013

Lift the suspension, throw on decent wheels and tires, add a cage, and turbocharge the crap out of that little 1.2 and it would be the perfect compact rally vehicle. I want to see a Super-mini racing series. Datsun vs. Ford Fiesta vs. Chevy spark vs. anything that is small, cheap and has less than 200hp.

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